Enter now to join The Launch Pad’s tradition of industry access and writer success, including projects sold to Netflix, Paramount, Sony and more.
Plus, seven bidding wars!
RAISED BY WOLVES | THE MARTIAN | GLADIATOR
“Writers are an integral part of my team and without them I would not be able to do my job, so to be able to work with Launch Pad and provide a new and innovative way for them to get their work out in the world is truly exciting.”
Manager & Producer, Energy Entertainment
“The numbers speak for themselves. Beyond the massive amount of writers who have landed reps from Launch Pad, no other has led to more sales and bidding wars in existence. And beyond that, the success isn’t just here, but these scripts have landed on every major end of year list. This place starts careers!”
The Launch Pad Competitions have led to more signings, success stories and careers than any other screenwriting competition. With nearly a decade of experience in promoting up-and-coming writers, The Launch Pad Competition has firmly established itself as the premier hub for Hollywood to discover fresh voices and new ideas. We advocate for all of our Top 100 finalists, working with them to share their work with the right industry members to advance their career.
Our prestigious juries of industry members include managers, agents, producers and executives at companies across Hollywood. We also offer exclusive partnerships with management and production companies to give writers an extra leg up.
Through these partnerships, as well as our exclusive mentorship opportunities, we seek to provide as many avenues towards success as possible. No competition will do more to help all of their finalists take the next steps in their careers, and no competition has had as much success in helping writers break into the industry. Enter now for a chance to join this tradition of Launch Pad success.
Aaron Lipsett
Heroes and Villains Entertainment | Manager
Aaron spent eight years with Escape Artists Entertainment, where he quickly rose from intern to Vice President of Television. In 2017 Aaron was named Vice President of New Mandate Films, a newly established production company focused on producing Jewish-themed feature and television content. Aaron oversaw the company’s development fund and built a dynamic slate of projects. In the summer of 2018, Aaron left the executive ranks to follow his true passion, working with talented writers and directors as a manager/producer. He joined the team at Heroes and Villains Entertainment, a production and management company, in the fall of 2018. Since then, he has assembled a diverse client roster that have worked on numerous television shows and sold projects to many feature studios and television networks.
Alex Barnes
Cavalry Media | Director of Development
Alex is Director of Development at Dana Brunetti's Cavalry Media working across film, TV and podcast. Prior to Cavalry Alex worked at Relativity Media and Trigger Street Productions. His career started in Australia producing and directing public broadcast documentaries, music videos, commercials and films. He was one of the producers on the iconic Australian anthology feature film, Tim Winton's THE TURNING.
Anna Schwartz
7 Deuce Entertainment | Director of Development
Anna is currently Director of Development at 7 Deuce Entertainment, a production and management company founded by CAA veteran agent, Jeremy Plager. She began her career in the entertainment industry working for Stacey Sher, starting as an intern and working up to second assistant through Stacey’s transition from independent producer to the co-president of Activision Blizzard Studios. In 2017, she started in CAA’s mailroom and moved into the MP Talent department.
Annika Patton
Temple Hill Entertainment | Executive Assistant
Annika Patton is an Executive Assistant at Temple Hill Entertainment and holds a B.A. in Film and Television and a minor in English from UCLA. She is an alumna of the Academy Gold Program and is passionate about discovering new and exciting voices and facilitating their entry into the studio filmmaking space.
Bronson DeLeon
Range Media Partners | Associate
Bronson is an Associate at Range Media Partners, supporting one of the managing partners of the firm. Previously, he served as Coordinator at Chris Hemsworth's Thematic Entertainment, assisting in creative development at the company throughout the production and release of EXTRACTION. Prior to that, he got his start working in development at Mandeville Films. Bronson has a B.A. in Telecommunications from Indiana University.
Brooklyn Weaver
Energy Entertainment | Manager
One of the most prolific spec-selling manager/producers in Hollywood, he has sold multiple Launch Pad projects in film, television and publishing. His clients include Rob Liefeld (DEADPOOL), Brad Ingelsby (RUN ALL NIGHT, OUT OF THE FURNACE), and Mark Mallouk (BLACK MASS). His clients have created the hit TV series REVERIE and EXTANT (Mickey Fisher) as well as BATES MOTEL (Anthony Cipriano). His clients have been staffed on such shows as Freeform’s SIREN, FX’s THE STRAIN and NBC’s CHICAGO P.D.
David Binns
Rascality Entertainment | Manager
David Binns founded Rascality Entertainment in 2018 as a literary management and production company, after spending several years at Energy Entertainment. The company's focus is to find new undiscovered writers across the world, develop their work and their voices, and to connect them to producers and other creatives at the highest levels in both commercial and indie markets. Rascality seeks writers in all capacities whether they be screenwriters, playwrights, novelists, and writer/directors.
Derrick Eppich
Empirical Evidence | Manager
After sending time working with Lee Stobby Entertainment, Derrick recently branched out to form his own management company Empirical Evidence. Derrick has signed multiple Launch Pad alumni in the past, and represented projects on the Young & Hungry and Hit Lists. His clients have written for such programs as THE ERIC ANDRE SHOW, THE RANCH, and BOB HEARTS ABISHOLA.
Grace Ledding
Agile Entertainment | Literary Manager
Grace Ledding is a literary manager and producer at Agile Entertainment. She got her start as an agent trainee at the William Morris Agency and then became a Creative Executive at foreign sales-based, film finance company, InterMedia, where she worked on BREACH, HUNTING PARTY, and Oliver Stone’s ALEXANDER among others. She then became Vice President at Paramount Pictures-based production company, Cerenzie-Peters, before launching her own management and production company ten years ago. Grace is currently an Executive Producer on Netflix’ animated series, HELLO NINJA!, which just launched Season 4, and developing a premium limited series at 20th Television with Bold Films, BARBIE & RUTH, based on Robin Gerber’s biography of Mattel founder, Ruth Handler.
Jason Lubin
First Story Entertainment | Manager & Producer
Jason Lubin is a manager-producer and the principal at First Story Entertainment, which he founded in 2018. Jason also develops both feature film and television projects under the company’s banner. Prior to starting First Story, Jason was a seasoned development executive. He worked as the Head of Production & Development at Lynda Obst Productions. Prior to LOP, Jason worked at Lionsgate for seven and a half years where he rose to Story Editor in the Motion Picture Group and served as the junior creative executive on multiple feature projects.
Jose Canas
Ghost House Pictures | Creative Executive
Jose Cañas is a Creative Executive at Ghost House Pictures. In this role, he is responsible for acquiring new material and developing projects, from conception through production. Jose joined Ghost House in 2017 and has participated in the development and production processes for films such as THE GRUDGE (2020), THE UNHOLY, NIGHTBOOKS and DON'T BREATHE 2.
Josh Zakaria
Zakaria Entertainment | Literary Manager
Josh Zakaria is a film and TV literary manager/producer who specializes in identifying and working with writers, directors, and filmmakers who are able to weave unique, authentic, and interesting characters into commercially conscious stories. Zakaria began his journey in entertainment at top management companies like Mosaic, Benderspink, and Anonymous Content. In 2017, Zakaria branched out and opened Zakaria Entertainment. Zakaria is excited and focused on finding emerging and unique voices to champion.
Maddy Kachadurian
Maddy joined the Romark team after getting her MFA in screenwriting from DePaul University in Chicago. Romark Entertainment is a production and management company whose projects include MARIAN with Margot Robbie, Donald Deline and Amy Pascal at Sony, TRANQUILTY BASE with Ridley Scott and Christopher Nolan at Fox, MATRIARCH with Doug Wick at Paramount, MR. & MRS. AMERICAN PIE with Laura Dern & Matt Bomer at Platform One, and JUST ONE KISS with Dylan Clark at Netflix, amongst others.
Rachel Kaminsky
Tradition Pictures | Creative Executive/Lit Manager
After working for ESPN as the creator and on-air personality of the long running hit radio segment, "The Buzz with the Queen Bee", Rachel turned her attention back to the world of film and TV, working as an independent producer on numerous micro-budget projects in the sports industry, as well as producing VR content for a tech non-profit. Upon joining Tradition Pictures at the top of 2018, Rachel quickly expanded the slate of the company, adding new clients as well as projects in both film and tv in formerly untapped genres such as YA, comedy, and children's programming. Her upcoming projects include COLD MILLION (feature) starring Thomas Jane, BITERS (TV) with Starlings Entertainment, and THE PHANTASMAGORIUM (TV) with AGC, directed by Andy Fickman.
Tiegen Kosiak
Dark Matter Entertainment | Founder
Tiegen Kosiak began her career handling commercial campaigns for Kay Jewelers, Hasbro, Red Bull, and other brands. She then worked at Untitled Entertainment before going on to become the Director of Development for Zoe Saldana’s Cinestar Pictures under first look deals with Lionsgate, Televisa, and AwesomenessTV. In June 2018, Tiegen formed Dark Matter Entertainment with Sasha Nonas-Barnes, the former Head of Development at Ineffable Pictures. The pair independently develop and produce dark comedy, elevated horror, and thrillers for TV, feature, and digital platforms. In 2020, Tiegen co-produced the holiday feature FIRST CHRISTMAS with friend and frequent collaborator Tia Mowry-Hardrict (SISTER SISTER, THE GAME, FAMILY REUNION) for Marvista Entertainment and OWN.
Everything the Top 10 receive, plus…
Everything the Top 50 receive, plus…
Everything the Top 100 receive, plus…
JUST. ONE. KISS. not only landed him representation with Verve and Romark Entertainment, but set the town on fire, eventually selling to Netflix in a bidding war.
Surj’s Launch Pad Top Comedy script THE CONFECTION CONNECTION caught the eye of actor Ed Helms and his production company Pacific Electric Company, who are on board to produce. He followed that up by landing on the 2018 Young & Hungry List and Hit List, and is now currently in development on multiple studio projects, including an untitled project for Sony Pictures.
A three-time Launch Pad Finalist, John’s latest project AMA: ASK ME ANYTHING made the Black List and now has Zelda Williams attached to direct with Assemble Media’s Jack Heller producing. He was also recently hired to write DOSE for AGBO producers Joe & Anthony Russo.
The only writer with multiple projects in the 2019 Feature Top 100, Chris Dennis signed with Romark Entertainment and Verve off the strength of his projects MAELSTROM and THE LAST ROSE OF SUMMER.
Requires Add-On in Checkout
The best way to learn is by working with experienced writers who have already navigated that path to success. That is exactly what the Launch Pad exclusive mentorship opportunity is set up to do.
Writer/director Alanna Brown’s feature directorial and screenwriting debut, TREES OF PEACE, premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, where it won the top jury prize—the Panavision Spirit Award for Independent Cinema—and also won the ADL Stand Up Award. Alanna was recently tapped by New Line to write a feature adaptation of the novel THE FORGETTING TIME. Prior to that, she completed a feature rewrite on GRAVE HILL for CJ Entertainment. In television, she’s a writer for the STARZ spinoff of the critically acclaimed film BLINDSPOTTING; and she recently wrote alongside Helen Hunt, Peter Tolan, and Wayne Conley for a comedy in development at FX.
James V. Hart is a world-renowned Hollywood screenwriter whose writing/producing credits include Contact, Hook, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, August Rush, Epic, Crossbones, Muppet Treasure Island and many more projects in development with major studios.
Santa Sierra is currently a co-executive producer on Starz' Power Book III: Raising Kanan. Previously she wrote for Netflix's Narcos, FX's Mayans MC and Vida for Starz.
This year’s Guaranteed Option partner is Romark Entertainment, who have set up multiple Launch Pad scripts around town, including MARIAN at Sony and Pascal Pictures and JUST. ONE. KISS. at Netflix. They have signed dozens of Launch Pad writers across the Feature, Pilot and Manuscript Competitions and is currently developing the Launch Pad projects KILL CREEK with Scott Derrickson at Showtime, and MR. & MRS. AMERICAN PIE with Laura Dern at Platform One.
This year we are thrilled to have TWO Guaranteed Signing Partners!
Our first Guaranteed Signing Partner is Rascality Entertainment. Founded by David Binns in 2018, Rascality Entertainment is a literary management and development company based in Atlanta, GA. Formerly the Vice President of Development at Energy Entertainment, David has built a network of film and TV’s top industry insiders. Utilizing the resources and experience in navigating the LA-based market, Rascality seeks to develop and empower fresh voices worldwide and to build the bridge for them to explore the greater film and TV landscape.
Joining them will be Artillery Creative, a management company founded by manager Tom Carter, who signed multiple writers out of the Launch Pad Competitions this past year, and has set up Launch Pad projects at Paramount, NBC, UCP, HBO and CBS.
The guaranteed option partner, each of the three mentors, and at least one guaranteed signing partner will select a minimum of 1 project each from this year’s competition to win their prize. To be eligible, entrants MUST select the “Guaranteed Option”, “Guaranteed Signing”, and/or “Mentorship” add-on at the time of entry.
If you select any add-ons at the time of entry, regardless of where you place in the competition, you will still be in the running for those add-on features.
The winners will be chosen based on the following criteria: (i) The originality and commerciality of the premise; (ii) The effectiveness of the plot and structure in serving that premise; (iii) The professional quality and creative use of the writing, formatting and presentation; (iv) The use of dialogue to advance the character, story and entertainment value of the project; (v) The originality, believability and emotional investment in the characters and their impact on the overarching story and themes.
Initial reads will be completed by professional industry readers, after which the top scored scripts will be named to a Second Round. At this point, our internal team of readers will read all remaining submissions to allow for extensive internal discussions over the relative merits and weaknesses of each project. Through internal conferences, we narrow down a list of 100 finalists. At this point, writers may be asked to submit supplemental information (a brief bio, a bible for their tv pilot, etc.) to assist in the decision making process.
Further rounds of internal reading and discussion, as well as consultations with our signing and option partners, narrows the finalists down to 10, at which point our panel of industry judges read each script and determine our winners.
Any entrant may be deemed ineligible at the sole discretion of Launch Pad. We reserve the right to amend these rules at any time.